So my new favorite tree for the season is the Big Leaf Maple (Acer macrophyllum). Like their name suggests, they have the biggest leaves of any maple tree - up to 14" wide. The trees themselves get up to 100' tall and they can live to be 300 years old or more. They grow in most of California, western Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia.
Squirrels, chipmunks, and several species of birds eat maple seeds and shelter in big leaf maple trees. Native Americans used the bark for making rope and the wood for making bowls, utensils, and canoe padles. Maple syrup can be made from the sap but these trees haven't been used to make syrup commercially. Big leaf maple is well-adapted to fire, which is good news for the ones we saw that grow amongst the chaparral-covered hills. |
